Knife



April 11, 1939. A KATZ|NGER y' 2,153,759

KNIFE Filed Jan. l5, 1937 Inventor Arthur Katzinger Patented pr. 11, 1939 UNITED STATES KNIFE' Arthur Katzinger, Glencoe, Ill., assignor to Edward Katzinger Company, Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Illinois Application January 13, 1937, Serial No. 120,401

n 1 Claim.

This invention relates to knives generally and paring knives particularly and has for its object the formation of a knife blade to partly conform to the curvature or contour of the fruit or vege- 5 table being peeled or pared, thereby facilitating the peeling or paring operation by permitting the Acutting over a larger area and reducing the ,waste of the body of the fruit or vegetable adhering to the peelings or parings cut therefrom. Another object of the present invention is to firmly and securely mount and position a finger rest adjoining the inner end of the handle extending overthe blunt or unsharpened edge of the knife blade.

l5 With the above and other objects in view, as will be apparent, this invention consists in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts, all as hereinafter more fully described, claimed and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a paring knife constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is an edge elevation in the direction of the sharpened or cutting edge of the knife blade;

and

Fig. 3 is a transverse section taken through the handle of the knife along line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

The usual and customary paring knife prior to this invention has had a substantially straight, or perhaps slightly curved cutting edge that could contact and operate upon a relatively small area of the fruit or vegetable being peeled or pared and to increase the size of the area operated upon to remove a greater section of skin or rind in a single cut, it has been necessary to cut deeper into the body of the fruit or vegetable thereby causing an appreciable percentage of the body of the fruit or vegetable to adhere to the removed skin or rind with an attendant Waste thereof.

The present invention contemplates a knife blade that will have a substantial portion of its cutting edge curved inwardly so that a greater 45 length thereof can have intimate contact with the exterior surface of a vegetable or fruit 'thereby permitting a relatively large, shallow or thin cut to be taken.

Where a great deal of paring or peeling is 50 done the forefinger of the operator resting and exerting pressure on the blunt or unsharpened edge of the blade becomes grooved and frequently sore and bruised and to prevent this a shield or guard over the unsharpened edge of the blade .55 adjoining the inner end of the knife handle has heretofore been provided as a rest for the fore or index finger of the operator.

The present invention has in view such a shield, finger rest or guard, so fixed with reference to the handle of the knife that it is a permanent part 5 thereof and braces and strengthens said handle. Furthermore, the shield or rest hereof is formed from a single strip of material and hence, is simple, inexpensive and easily formed and mounted and yet strong and durable. 10

Reference being had more particularly to the drawing, I indicates a knife blade having a relatively straight unsharpened or blunt noncutting edge II and the acute point or toe I2, which is of course desirable but not essential in l5 paring knives. The end of the blade IU opposed to the toe I2 is provided with a coplanar handle shank I3. This shank I3 has the hande of the knife secured thereto; consisting of two relatively thick handle sections I4 of any suitable material, 20 placed on opposite sides of the shank by a series of rivets I5 piercing the sections I4 and shank I3.

It will be observed that the heads of the rivets I5 are counter-sunk in the handle sections I4 and that said handle sections are as wide and no 25 Wider than the width of the shank. Hence, if it is desired to have the handle taper toward the heel of the blade I0 (as shown) both the handle l sections I4 and shank I3 are correspondingly and similarly tapered, or if it be so desired the edges 30 of these elements may be straight or curved. The extremities of the handle sections I4 adjoining the heel of the blade I0 are, for convenience of manipulation, beveled as at I6.

The outer terminal I'I of the shank I3 projects 35 beyond the outer ends of the handle sections I4 and has its edge curved, pointed or otherwise shaped. An aperture I8 is provided centrally in this projecting extension I'I of the shank I3 as a means of hanging or suspending the knife. 40

The sharpened or cutting edge of the blade I0 is somewhat serpentine in outline, curving outwardly, as at I9, from the toe I2 of the blade and then curving inwardly, as at 20, about centrally of the length of the blade, and nally again curving outwardly, as at 22 at the heel of the blade adjoining the inner end of the knife handle. The inwardly curved portion 2IJ of the blade IIJ is relatively long and shallow and approximates the curvature or contour of a portion of the exterior of a fruit or vegetable. Manifestly, this inwardly curved section 20 of the cutting edge of the knife blade I0 may have any desirable outline or curve. That portion I9 of the cutting edge of the blade I0 can be used in the same manner as the straight 55 end thereof adjoining the knife blade IIJ thev finger rest 22 is provided with an extension 23 positioned above the non-cutting edge II of the blade I0 and at and near its extremity curving away from the blade edge II, as at 24.

In order to permanently mount the finger rest 22 on the knife, the longitudinal edges thereof are provided with flanges 25, 26, which are bent to rest under and flush against the under or Yinner surface of the rest 22, said flanges terminating adjoining one another in alignment with the approximate longitudinal center of the finger res't. At its edge the flange 25 has a plate 21 formed thereon and at right angles thereto. Projecting between one of the handle sections I4 and the shank I3, the plate I 'I is gripped between that handle section I4 and the shank and is there held by the rivets I5 also passing through the plate 21. While it is only necessary to have one of the rivets I5 pass through the plate 21, it

is considered better to pass two of the rivets therethrough the plate, thereby providing a more substantial mounting for the rest 22.

This plate 2'I is of a shape and size to be coextensive with the adjoining and cooperative portion of the shank I3 and handle section I4, so that the edges and sides of the handle are smooth and unbroken by any projecting parts.

From the foregoing, it is manifest that that portion of the finger rest 22 positioned over the handle is to all intents and purposes a part of the handle While the extension 23 thereof projecting over the unsharpened edge I I of the blade I0 prevents the fore or index finger of the user from bearing or pressing on such unsharpened edge and that the rest constitutes in effect an integral, substantial part of the knife.

What is claimed is:

The combination with a knife blade having an unsharpened edge and a handle shank, of a handle section fixed to each side of said shank and having an edge in alignment with the unsharpened edge of said blade, a finger rest flush upon the edge of the handle sections aligned With the unsharpened edge of the blade and having an extension positioned forwardly of said handle sections, and an angularly disposed plate on said rest engaged between one handle section and said shank.

ARTHUR KATZINGER. 

